Classical Pilates in Worcester Massachusetts

I was lucky enough to be invited to an Influence Tour of the new Whole Foods Market store in Shrewsbury, MA. The store is on the site of the old Spag’s store and honors its legacy throughout the new store.

This new Whole Foods Market is a beautiful store with loads of healthy options including a large prepared foods section, bakery, tons of vegan products and a Cold Pressed Juice Bar from Squeeze Company.

The store also features a full wine, beer and spirits section and even an upstairs bar servicing craft beers, wine and specialty cocktails. As well as a coffee bar and floral shop.

What a great addition to our community and I can not wait to start shopping there. Get a sneak peek at the new Whole Foods Market in the video below.

If you are like most people, including me, you have made losing weight a goal for 2018. You may have heard the phrase “abs are made in the kitchen not the gym”, which means that nutrition is an important factor in losing weight. In fact, 75-80% of your body composition is from what you eat.

But where to start? Knowing what foods to avoid and what to eat to nourish your body can be overwhelming with all the new diet fads and trends that we are bombarded with at the start of the year. Seriously, how many times have you seen Marie Osmond on TV this week alone?

In this video, I offer some simple tips to get started on a clean eating nutrition plan. Clean eating is one of the easiest things you can do. Its a not a trendy diet, instead it teachers you a more sustainable way of eating to help you lose weight and keep it off.

Don’t forget to like, comment, share and subscribe for more in my Flab to Fab Weight Loss Journey video series.

I’ve decided to share my personal weight loss journey here on my studio page. This is something that I debated for awhile about doing, but I realize that most of my clients come to me with their own desires to lose weight.

In this video I share a little about where I am in my weight loss journey and what I will be sharing over the next year as I work towards my own health and wellness goals. Flab to Fab will be a weekly series of videos on my studio YouTube page to chronicle my weight loss journey.

It is my hope that this will inspire others on their journey to lose weight and achieving their health and wellness goals for 2018.

Baby, it’s cold outside! Winter is fast approaching here in New England, and while it is easy to start going into hibernation mode, remember that Summer bodies are made in the Winter. Sure, when it’s dark and chilly out, it is much easier to stay in bed under the warm covers. Or on snowy days (yay snow days!) it is easy to sit inside catching up on Netflix shows and eating heavy, comforting foods. However, this will only derail your health and wellness goals.

Committing to your Pilates practice, or any workout really, is just a stepping stone to a greater reward and that is making a stronger feeling YOU. The only person who can make the change is you. Don’t be upset by the result you didn’t get with the work you didn’t do. Remember, the only bad workout is the one that you didn’t do.

So let’s look at some motivational tips to keep you active during the Winter:

Set a Goal and Reward Yourself for Achieving It – Set a goal such as “I will do _____ amount of workouts for _____ amount of time”. For instance “I will do three workouts a week, every week for the next three months” Then think of a way to reward yourself at the end of your goal. Maybe you treat yourself to a massage or maybe you buy those shoes you’ve been eyeing. Having a reward at the end will give you a goal to work towards and help keep you on track for achieving your goals by Spring/Summer.

Keep a Journal – before and after every workout, write down in a journal how you felt. When you are low on motivation you can read back over the last time you worked out and how great you felt afterwards. It will motivate you to hit your mat. This will also give you insight into what caused you feel to sluggish etc.

Create a Goal or Vision Board – Remember why you started. Think about why you want to work out or make these health changes. What was your aim in doing so? Keep that in mind and let it be a motivating factor to working out. Add images of yourself at your ideal weight, or the swimsuit you want to buy, or pictures of that spot in the Bahamas that you want to visit in the Summer. Add quotes, images or anything else that will motivate and inspire you. Put this in a spot that you will see everyday, throughout the day.

Set Up Yourself Up for Success – literally set out everything you need to get in your Pilates practice or workout. Keep your mat out in a spot that when you walk by and have time you can just get down and do your practice. Set out warm clothes to get you ready to step out and take on the day.

Find an Accountability Buddy – find a partner to do your practice or workout with. Schedule a workout date and stick to it. It is harder to not do your workout if you know someone else is counting on you to be there and to motivate them. You can set a workout goal together and cheer each other on.

Time for You – set a time each day that is your time to practice self care and get your practice in. Even if you have to get up an extra 15 minutes to do so. Set an alarm on your phone to wake you up early so you can get in your workout. Think of how great you will feel starting your day with a quick and energizing practice.

Mix it up – Try a new workout! Maybe instead of your daily walks outside, that you can’t keep up with because of the cold and snow, you try an indoor workout. I LOVE spin classes. It is inside, helps you get your sweat on, has fun music and is a challenging workout. Join a gym and try out some of the classes. The added benefit of this is getting in your cardio in conjunction with your Pilates practice.

Workout at Home – Try my 6 week Mat Pilates for Beginners series (or my other videos) on YouTube. These can easily be done at home, office or anywhere else you can roll out a mat.

Remember…it’s the most wonderful time of the year! Do you have any motivational tips you want to share? Post them in the comments! And I’ll make sure the heat is on the studio, come get your sweat on this Winter!

I was super excited when I was approached by Boston Voyager magazine to be featured in their section of “Inspiring Stories” in the Boston and surrounding areas. I think we all have unique life experiences that we should share, and I was more than happy to do so for Boston Voyager.

In the article, I share how and why I became a Yoga and Pilates teacher. In my years of teaching in the Boston and Central MA areas I have met some wonderful people that I have been able to share my love and passion for Yoga and Pilates with. It is my hope that I have been able to touch lives in a positive way through my teaching. That is why I do what I do.

I have always had an obsession with Mermaids, ever since I was a kid. I decided to celebrate the one year anniversary of the studio being open by redesigning my logo. I wanted to use the Mermaid a year ago, when I opened, but went in a different direction.

As I was redesigning the logo, I thought about the Pilates Mermaid. This is one of the few classic Pilates exercises that is actually done on all of the apparatus: the Reformer, Tower/Cadillac, Wunda Chair and the mat.

The Pilates Mermaid has many benefits including being a delicious stretch for the side body. Enjoy the video below on the Pilates Mermaid! Bust out your mat and give it a go!

When you are on a sugar-free diet you begin to realize how much you miss that bite of chocolate after dinner. While you can nibble on a square of 90% dark chocolate, it’s just not the same. Too bitter and not enough sweet. Enter these totally sugar-free and gluten-free Date Truffles. No matter what nutritional plan/diet you are following (vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free or Paleo) these dates are a simple but delicious treat.

Ingredients:

20 Medjool Dates – pitted and soaked

1 – 2 Tablespoons of raw cacao powder

1 – 2 Tablespoons of raw cacao nibs

salt to taste

Stevia/Truvia/Honey/Agave for extra sweetness (optional)

spices – I add a teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of nutmeg

Additional add ins – I add almond pieces and raw, unsweetened coconut

Sea Salt to taste

Vanilla, Orange, Mint extract (optional to change the flavors)

Preparing the truffles:

Pit, soak and drain your dates. Cut them in half for easier processing.

Add those to a food processor with all of the other ingredients above.

The choices for add in’s are pretty much endless. Add dried fruits, different nuts, shredded coconut. You can change the flavors with different extracts such as orange, vanilla, or even mint.

Process until everything is blended and you get a dough like consistency. These can be pretty sticky though. If too wet or sticky add a touch more of the cacao powder and blend again.

I spray my hands with a Pam like product, or use coconut oil, butter, etc so the dough doesn’t stick to your hands and you can roll these into the balls.

Take a tablespoon sized amount of the dough and roll into between hands into a small ball shape.

You can roll these in coconut, cacao powder or even nuts.

Freeze! Placing them in the freezer helps to firm them up a bit so they are more of a truffle consistency instead of a mushy, dough like ball. These don’t get too hard in the freezer so you can eat them right out of the freezer.

Enjoy!

Please let me know in the comments if you have any questions. And if you tried these let me know what you thought!